Oily skin is a dermatological condition that affects many women and men. Especially young women suffer from it and are permanently looking for ways and means to get rid of this problem of oily skin – preferably permanently.
What is oily skin?
We speak of oily skin when certain areas of the face are covered by an oily, greasy film at certain times or permanently. We speak of oily skin when certain areas of the skin on the face are covered by an oily, greasy film at certain times or permanently. The upper layer of the skin, the so-called horny layer or hyperkeratosis, is thickened in this clinical picture and the pores of oily skin are often clogged due to the overproduction of sebum. But not only the face can be affected, other parts of the body are also prone to oily skin. If the scalp is affected, the sufferer tends to have an oily hairline. There are two manifestations of oily skin: on the one hand, seborrhoea oleosa, which shows the typical skin appearance with the light oil film, which appears shiny and shining, and on the other hand, seborrhoea sicca, which leads to dandruff and dryness despite oily skin and is noticeable to the affected person by an unpleasant feeling of tension and red, scaly patches.
Causes
But how does oily skin with this shiny, oily or flaky film develop in the first place? At a young age, especially during puberty and teenage years, the skin produces more sebum in the glands due to the onset of hormonal changes. Women can also often observe oily skin and skin blemishes on themselves shortly before or during menstruation or during pregnancy, which is also due to the changing hormone status. However, hormonal changes or overproduction are not always the cause of oily skin; stress, the use of certain medications, predispositions and malnutrition as well as excessive consumption of alcohol or nicotine can also cause and promote oily skin. Likewise, there are other diseases that have oily skin as a concomitant or symptom – for example, Parkinson’s disease or ovarian disease.
Diseases with this symptom
- Hormonal imbalances
- Acne
- Ovarian inflammation
- Seborrhea
- Parkinson’s disease
- Adrenocortical insufficiency
- Menopause
- Alcoholism
- Contact allergy
Course
As already described, with oily skin, the pores are often clogged by the excessive production of the sebaceous glands, which can lead to other problems such as pimples, blackheads and blemishes, in addition to the shiny and moist appearance. During puberty, oily skin is very often accompanied by mild to severe acne, which those affected can hardly get under control themselves. They usually experiment with various means of symptom control or symptom masking, which can often lead to a worsening of the oily skin due to incorrect treatment. Excessive powdering, for example, can further stress and clog affected pores and exacerbate skin blemishes. Likewise, purposefully drying out oily skin can trigger severe skin irritation, which in the worst cases can promote allergies and eczema.
Complications
When naming the complication, the whole health disorder should be considered. A complication in medicine is a consequence of a disorder or the side effect of a preparation if it was used against this health disorder. Therefore, complications can occur in case of non-treatment as well as in case of therapy. Oily skin is a possible complication of hormonal disorders, for example during puberty or menopause. Likewise, oily skin may again cause complications such as acne. Oily skin is caused by an overproduction of fat in the sebaceous glands. Complications mostly occur with an unhealthy diet. Oily skin can be a warning sign of bacterial skin infections. To avert any complications, a dermatological examination should follow after the first symptoms flare up. After that, the patient should be treated with appropriate ointments in the course of elimination of occurring complications such as greasy skin. For this purpose, a plan for the subsequent course of action against oily skin or the triggering health disorder can be drawn up.Oily skin, on the other hand, is only one complication among others caused by various skin diseases. A healthy dietary intake, abstaining from alcohol and nicotine, as well as adequate facial care and can avert oily skin. Occasionally, a low-fat diet is useful. Various preparations promote oily skin and are therefore not recommended for some skin conditions.
When should you go to the doctor?
The comfort that oily skin is less prone to wrinkles, many of its owners can enjoy only half-heartedly. They suffer too much from the shiny and coarse-pored skin appearance. In addition, oily skin is more prone to skin impurities. When is oily skin only a cosmetic problem? When is it a case for the specialist? The oily appearance of oily skin is almost always due to an overproduction of the sebaceous glands. This in turn is caused by androgens, male sex hormones. Not only men, but also women have androgens in their bodies, albeit in much smaller quantities than men. If the above-average sebaceous gland activity mainly manifests itself as shiny skin, it is sufficient to conceal the undesired shine with appropriate skin care products and possibly to visit a beautician. The situation is different with an excess of androgens. In women in particular, an excess of these can have other unwanted effects, such as a lady’s beard or other unwanted hair growth. Hormone therapy prescribed by a doctor can curb androgen production and improve the appearance of the skin. This method is often successful for skin blemishes such as acne. In addition, the dermatologist has numerous other treatment methods for oily skin at his disposal. He is also informed about diseases that have oily skin as an accompanying symptom. A controlling doctor’s visit (e.g. at the dermatologist) is useful for oily skin.
Treatment and therapy
To be able to treat oily skin specifically, it is advisable to care for and clean affected skin areas regularly. In the morning and evening, the oily skin should be cleaned with a gentle washing lotion, whose ph value should ideally be below 6. Important here is the perfect cleaning of make-up residues, skin flakes and dirt, so as not to further burden the oily skin. The belief that moisture-removing soaps and lotions can combat oily skin is unfortunately invalidated by the fact that drying skin will only react by producing even more oil, so you should keep your hands off such products. Oily skin also needs light moisturizing, but it should be used sparingly and selectively. Weekly exfoliation of oily skin promotes a clean complexion and helps to combat clogged pores and the resulting problems. Special care products for oily skin are offered in drugstores and pharmacies.
Outlook and prognosis
Oily skin does not necessarily cause complications, and it is not necessary to see a doctor in every case. If the oily skin is not treated, then the course of the disease depends very much on the hygiene of the affected person. If the hygiene is very poor, then the oily skin will usually not disappear by itself and thus remain oily. Oily skin often looks unaesthetic. Thus, it can also happen that inflammations and sores form on the skin due to the lack of hygiene. This happens especially when itching develops. The oily skin can be treated by ordinary soaps and shower gels, the success usually occurs immediately. In a few cases, the oily skin is caused by frequently repeated showering, as this destroys the natural protective vision of the skin. In this case, showering should not be repeated so often. With specific treatment, the symptom can be eliminated very quickly. Consultation with a doctor is not necessary in most cases. However, if the skin has suddenly become greasy and the symptom does not disappear by washing, a doctor can be consulted.
Prevention
Unfortunately, oily skin cannot really be prevented in any meaningful way, but it can be counteracted and stopped by daily and thorough cleansing of the skin areas at risk, by targeted treatment of problem areas and with the right make-up and care products, and by ensuring that oily skin does not affect and even cloud your well-being.
You can do it yourself
Oily skin is usually a symptom of poor or improper personal hygiene. If you suffer from oily skin, you do not have to go to the doctor immediately and you can also take measures against this problem yourself. Those who use too many care products ensure that the natural protection of the skin is not maintained. In this case, the skin reacts by becoming greasy again. However, since the fat cannot be absorbed directly, the skin itself remains greasy. This can also happen if a person showers too often or the skin comes into contact with water very frequently. Here, the oily skin can be avoided by not showering too frequently. Also, only those cosmetics should be used that are gentle on the skin and are as pH skin neutral as possible. Thus, the natural protective layer of the skin is not destroyed. On the other hand, too infrequent personal hygiene can also lead to oily skin. Those who shower or use skin care products only very rarely should increase these intervals and thus wash the grease off the skin. Oily skin can also be caused by a poor diet. It is often caused by greasy and sweet food, if this is taken in excess.
